Transcendent
by Freakyleaf
Summary: Three years after Sera's disappearance, we find that Sheena's relationship with Zelos seems to be crumbling. On top of that, Taro has news for Sheena, and Martel only knows what that'll end up being. (Sequel to Fidelity)
1. Monday Morning

**Prescript: **Hey everyone! I finally got around to typing up the true sequel to Fidelity, instead of just killing you slowly with fluffy little one-shots. Anyway, from the moment I started writing this, I fell in love with it. I really like how it's going, and I hope you all think so too!

**Setting: **Three years after Fidelity.

**Inspiration:** All you people who read the first one!

**Warnings: **Um . . . fluff, depression, and people getting beat up? Dunno. X3;

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia. But I do own Taro, Mina, Jennai, and Sera.

**Transcendent; Chapter One: Monday Morning**

All I could feel was cold air blowing in my face. I was hurtling toward the ground so fast that every speck of dust was a blur. When I hit the ground, I choked, gasping for breath. There was pressure on my throat, a low hum in my ears, and it was totally dark. "Ahh! Help! Someone please help me!" My voice echoed into the darkness; a hopeless plea. Where was Zelos when I needed him?

Very abruptly, there came a sharp pain in the back of my head. My breath caught in my lungs, the blood drained my face, and everything slowly faded to black . . .

**XOXOXOXO**

"_Mom, wake up, we're gonna be late!"_

As I groggily opened my eyes, I figured out soon enough that I was in my own bedroom again. It was cold and had that lonely feeling — Zelos was gone. But my daughter, Mina, was there, and she kept yelling at me with such urgency in her voice, I was beginning to think the house was on fire. "What is it, sweetheart?"

"It's eight o'clock, mom. I'm going to be late for school," she answered dutifully. She loved school — don't most gung-ho nine-year-olds? — and did a better job of waking me up than any alarm clock ever could.

Mentally smacking myself for ever thinking her father would take her to school for once, I rolled out of bed and pulled a robe on. "Have you eaten?"

"Yup. Bacon, eggs, toast, and milk."

"Save any for me?"

"As always." We both smiled; this was our daily routine, aside from the whole late start thing. Mina would wake up, get ready for school, make enough breakfast for her and me, then eat and come wake me up so I could walk with her to school.

What peeved me the most was how Zelos never showed up in the morning. Sure, he payed her tuition, and other financial problems, but when it came to taking care of family affairs, he was just no good. He and I still lived in separate houses, taking turns caring for Mina every week; once, he had suggested I move in with him, but I would have none of it. Mina was to go to school in Mizuho and learn of the ancient Igaguri customs like a normal child from the village.

"How come daddy never takes me to school?" Mina asked, tilting her chin up to look at me. Even when Mina stayed with her father, he still sent her to my place early in the morning so he wouldn't have to take her to school himself.

Nervously smiling, I gave her the most non-offensive answer I could: "Because . . . he's very busy, you see? He has lots of work to do."

_Hah,_ I thought bitterly, _Work indeed_. Three years ago, when Sera Cetra vanished from the center of Mizuho, Zelos' longtime friend Taro Nagisaki had reportedly gone all to pieces. I was told the fallen priest had known all along what was to happen to Sera, but still, he lost his cool and broke down one day.

Ever since then, Zelos had been staying with the guy in Flanoir, for days on end, perhaps. That would have been fine, except for two tiny details — first, he always left without saying anything, and second, he had a _daughter_ to take care of.

"Is it because of uncle Taro?" Mina really larked Taro. He spoiled her rotten and took her places all the time . . . or used to. Lately he hadn't even called to say hello.

Man, was I relieved to see the school up ahead. "You'd best hurry," I prompted, "Otherwise you'll be marked tardy." It wasn't that I didn't want to talk with my own daughter, because I really did, it was just that . . . well, I didn't want to tell her that Yes, Taro was a big portion of Zelos' not being around much. It probably would have upset her.

"Okay, see you later!" She smiled and waved as she ran ahead, and I waved back. There were times when I'd stand and watch her go into the school, and want so badly to chase after her and keep her near me always. I got so scared that I would lose her.

But, like Colette, she would just smile over her shoulder and go on her way.

**XOXOXOXO**

When I got back to my house, I was thoroughly surprised to find Zelos there, eating what I guessed was my portion of Mina's breakfast. "Hello, hunny!" he purred, beaming at me cheerily. "Mina at school now?"

"Yes, no thanks to you," I snapped, taking the plate of bacon and eggs from him before he could eat it all. "What are you doing here so early?"

"Took a Rheaird from Flanoir just to see ya, and this is what I get?" He sipped at _my_ milk and winked.

I was not what you'd call "pleased" with his sudden entrance. "Oh, you came to visit! My, how thoughtful. Goddess forbid you come home to stay with your _family_, or does your babysitter deserve more attention than we do?"

I could see I'd broken through his happy facade to the more serious interior. He frowned and shook his head as he paced the room. "Look. I'm sorry, Sheena. It's just . . . Taro really needs me around. If I'm not there, he gets totally plastered and harasses the nuns . . . it's a real hell trying to care of him _and_ Mina."

"Why am I not surprised? ..."

"What?" He turned to look at me.

"Can't you just bring Taro back to your house and look out for him there?" This was a concept I'd been thinking of for a while — hoping it would work. Something needed to change, and soon. Otherwise, I would cut him out of the picture altogether.

"Don't you think I've tried? He's just as stubborn about leaving the temple as you are about leaving Mizuho!" Our voices were steadily raising an active higher with each thing we said; an argument was just bound to spring up.

I wasn't about to let that happen, though; instead, I released my anger with a sigh and sat down at the kitchen table. "Zelos . . . please. We have to think of something. I don't want Mina to live a split life, and I _know_ you don't, either."

"You're right." He sat down also. "Maybe whatever it is Taro wants to tell you will help."

_Oh, no,_ I thought, _Taro wants to talk._ "What . . . ?"

"He asked me to tell you that he wants to talk to you in Flanoir as soon as you can possibly get there," Zelos explained. "And also, you're supposed to bring Jennai."

Rubbing at my temples, I felt a headache coming on. Jennai Cetra is my neighbor and Sera's older sister. Not unlike Taro, she flipped her lid after Sera disappeared, and not much of anyone had seen her outside her house since then. "What is this about?" I groaned.

Zelos shrugged. "He didn't say."

"Damn . . . " This was turning out to be a hell of a day. And it was going to get worse, since I had to venture out to Jennai's house and persuade her into coming with me.

**XOXOXOXO**

"Jennai, please! It won't take long — just to Flanoir and back!" I pleaded, holding the front door of her house open with my shoulder.

My neighbor was in total hysterics. "No! I'm not going anywhere near that sacrilegious creep! Never!"

"Please! If he wants you to come, then it must be about Sera!" This begging thing was not a concept I was used to (I get what I want, if you catch my drift), and I sure as hell didn't want to do it all the time. It was . . . degrading. "C'mon, Jennai. Trust me."

"How could I trust _you_? You betrayed the whole village — several times, I might add!" she shot back.

Maybe it was the summer heat, and maybe it was my temper colliding with my migraine, but before I could stop myself, I was whaling on her — punching, scratching, biting, pulling hair. "You are going with me to see Taro in Flanoir and THAT IS FINAL!" I yelled in her ear.

Several people ventured out to see what was going on, but there wasn't much to see — I dragged Jennai outside and had the Rheaird high in the sky before a word was said.

She grumbled and growled unhappily all the way there, and when we came to the Flanoirian Martel Temple, I honestly thought she would pass out. "Sheena please don't make me go in there, I don't want to see him and whatever he has to say, I don't want to hear it, ohh Sheena _please_ . . . " she sobbed, taking hold of my arm and trying to pull me away from the large double doors.

I guess I did feel sorry for her, even if she was just being pathetic. "Jennai . . . don't you want to know what happened to your sister?"

"Well yes, but I . . . "

"Then come on." I warmed my arm out of her grasp and pulled her inside, up the stairs and knocked on the door of Taro's room, entering only after we heard the tortured voice inside call, Come in.


	2. The Truth

**Prescript:** Hmm . . . only one review? crushed :( Thanks MoonCannon for the support, anyway!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia. But I do own Taro, Mina, Jennai, and Sera.

**Transcendent; Chapter two: The Truth**

Taro didn't look any different than he did three years ago. If he hadn't spoken to us at all, we would have never known he'd been as depressed as Zelos had described him. "Good to see ya, ladies!" he said, grinning. He sounded weak and exhausted. "Guess Zelos got home all right, Sheena? How's little Mina doin'?"

"Yes, he did, and she's doing very well. And you?" It felt weird to talk to him like this after so long, almost as if I'd been promised a pool and gotten a puddle (that is to say, here I was expecting this big, exciting reunion, and all I got was a Hello, how's the family).

Taro got on his feet, the metal discs on the heels of his boots clinking on the ground as he paced the room. "Good, good. I called you here to tell you . . . Sera Cetra is still alive."

Beside me, Jennai made a sound between a choke and a laugh. "What? You . . . how dare you bring me here and feed me these lies? You're just as—"

"Hey, if you don't want to believe it, go on home." I could tell from his expression, Taro was dead serious. Which was nerve-racking, because if Jennai hadn't doubted him, I would have. "But she _is_ alive, and I can take you to her."

"Tell me how." My neighbor folded her arms and scowled. "Tell me how my baby sister is alive after what happened in Mizuho. And tell me, where is she?"

I could see those smiling eyes of his glistening slyly. "Sera was never harmed that day. She was simply transported elsewhere via angelic powers," he explained. Before we could ask, To where? He said, "She was taken to the inner sanctum of the Tower of Salvation."

"Why? What is she doing in a place like that?" I hated the Tower of Salvation. It made me nervous and dizzy, especially when we went up in it.

The feeling you get when you're about to sit through a long spiel sprang on me just as Taro began to answer my question. "Ya know how there's that barrier around the Tower of Salvation? Sera, ever since the day she was born, was meant to produce that barrier. She is a half-elf, selected to guard the Tower, much like the Chosen is selected to regenerate the world." He looked to me, then to Jennai. "Get it?"

I did . . . kind of, but Jennai shook her head slowly. "Why? Why my sister? I wasn't compatible with the requirements, why is she?"

"It's the genes," Taro said, shrugging.

Jennai looked like she was going to go AWOL at any given moment. "That's not fair . . . "

"Wait, so . . . Jennai was supposed to do it before? But she can't, because she doesn't meet the requirements, and Sera does?" I asked, baffled. All this was just barely making sense to me.

She burst. He nodded. "That's right."

Okay, I got that. But one thing didn't make sense at the time, and I guess I shouldn't have asked — "What are the requirements? Er . . . what did Sera do that her sister didn't?"

"Sera came to me when she learned about her duty. Jennai didn't," Taro answered. Once again, he answered my next question before I could ask it; "I'm not _just_ a lowly fallen priest; although I was once a follower of Martel and am no longer, I am the _only_ priest out there that was taught to awaken dormant abilities within angels. Only by coming to me can the guardians of the Tower learn how to do their job, as well as use their transcendent powers to their advantage."

This came as a surprise to me. Truths be told, I always thought Taro was just a lazy bum who gave up on the teachings and was too cheap to move out of his chambers in the temple. "So . . . you taught Sera what to do."

He started to answer, but Jennai jumped into the discussion to chew him out some more. "You corrupted my baby sister! Why couldn't you just turn her down? You didn't have to do that to her!"

"What, and risk gettin' nuked by the Cruxis?" Taro snapped back. I could feel serious tremors building up. An earthquake of an argument was just bound to happen.

Jennai moved closer to Taro and raised a hand to smack him. That wasn't smart, I knew rather well. Threatening that guy could get you shot. "Better you than her," she snarled in his face, and the fight was on.

Taro pounced on her, knocking her totally senseless. She couldn't get a hand on him, not even close. He pounded her face in and pulled her hair, bit her hand when she tried to sock him, then took a pillow off the couch and pressed it over her face until she was screaming and begging him to lay off.

Why didn't I interfere? I... don't know. Maybe because Jennai sort of deserved a good beating (even if I'd already pummeled her earlier that day).

"Besides," Taro roared. "I turned her down once and she came back the next day, begging me." Getting on his feet, he began fixing his blonde hair until it was perfect. "But anyway. I've been speaking with Sera at the Tower of Salvation, and she has requested that I take you to see her."

Jennai got up, also. "Damn right. You're taking us to see her whether you like it or not." I saw her flinch when Taro whipped around to glare in her direction. Obviously, this was considered a threat.

For the first time in what felt like my whole life, I was suddenly afraid to speak. It was unlike me to be like that — seven lonely years in a backwater prison cell tend to make you tough and desperate to be heard — and I found myself swallowing down a lump in my throat before I could ask, "Should I bring Zelos and Mina, or . . . no?"

"Nah. She asked to see just you and her sister." Taro shook his head at me, giving a sort of sorrowful glare to the floor.

Jennai looked to me like she really couldn't believe any of this. She had admitted to being aware of what had happened, but still, she seemed so out of it. Guess I would be, too, if the only person I really loved got taken away from me before I could say goodbye . . .

Rather abruptly, I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Don't cry . . . " Taro said, turning me around to face him. "It's okay." I guess maybe I'd started crying because of Zelos. He worried me, always vanishing for so long without a word or even a note. "Let's get going, all right?"

I nodded. The three of us moved out of the door — people throughout the temple seemed shocked to see Taro — and went around back to where the Rheairds were kept. It amazed me how many Rheairds there were now, and the aircrafts could be used for longer periods of time.

**XOXOXOXO**

We flew right over Mizuho on the way to the tower, and I spotted a large group of children marching around in the grass. _Mina's class must be having a hike today_ . . . I thought, searching for my little redheaded daughter. But I didn't see her (or Zelos for that matter), and Taro landed us outside the Tower of Salvation.

As I stared up at the stump of a tower, I remembered why I hated the place so much. It was cold and dizzying, always seeming ominous from the outside and threatening on the inside. If you looked really hard, you could actually see the translucent, incandescent barrier guarding it, with only a small gap in front of the door for specific people to go into. Dead grass crunched beneath our shoes as we entered.

"Sera is on the very top floor of the tower," Taro explained as we climbed the stairs and the dias. "Beyond Welgaia, and very near the port leading to Derris-Kharlan. There will be _no_ gravity, and little oxygen."

The thought of being unable to breathe scared me. "How does Sera survive there?" Although I was wary of asking questions that would upset Jennai, my curiosity was boundless.

"She's an angel. Breathing isn't really an issue, and the Cruxis Crystal sustains her," he answered.

The teleporter we stood on whisked us up higher into the Tower with a bright explosion of white light, and as we hurtled upward blindly, the ground dropped away, the oxygen thinned, and we landed abruptly in the city of angels. "Just a bit further," the priest said, taking us higher via the transport discs.

The last room was like a spacious black cloud; we floated through it with no fear of obstacles, but it was too foggy and dark to really grasp the image of the interior of the room. Mounds of various portions of energy wafted about and swirled around each other, all lingering near a pair of pastille red lights. They were wings, Cruxis angel wings, and were suspended in midair, apparently against their will for they occasionally twitched violently. A gap in the shadows revealed a white backdrop, and in the center of it all was Sera, a silvery, electric-looking orb in both hands.


	3. Sera's Subconcious

**Prescript:** Wow, this took a long time to get posted. Sorry, I got sidetracked! (twitch)

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia. But I do own Taro, Mina, Jennai, and Sera.

**Transcendent; Chapter three: Sera's Subconscious**

Sera's face beheld no emotion, and she, much like her wings, hung lifelessly in the air. I couldn't tell where it came from, but Jennai gave a choked sob. She must have been able to tell that Sera was unconscious, too. "Why is she like that?" I asked, searching through the dark gray haze to find Taro.

As he answered, I found him surprisingly close-by. "Because of the Cruxis Crystal, her consciousness has been absorbed, and the powerful angelic form capable of holding the Ochre Stone is all that remains."

It was exactly like Colette when she had lost her soul. I'd seen this situation too many times, and rubbed my temples aggravatedly.

Jennai gave a mirthless laugh and levitated closer to her sister. "Sera... what's happened to you? Can't you speak anymore?"

"She... cannot hear you any longer. Subconsciously, she's happy that you're here, though," Taro spoke up, moving toward the light in the center of the room. I wondered how he could know what she was thinking subconsciously. "She says she's sorry, big sister."

His face was just slightly illuminated by the gap of light, and I stared at him, curious as to how he could hear her thoughts. "Are you a psychic or something?"

Taro laughed. "No, no..." That was all he said, no explanation as to _how_ he was doing it. "Sera says, how is your family, Sheena?"

Twirling around to face Sera, I hesitated. It felt awful weird to have a conversation with a lifeless angel. "Uh... they're... they're doing okay, I guess... Mina is in the fourth grade in Mizuho, and..." Did I want everyone to know about Zelos? "Zelos is fine."

"She's glad to hear it." Taro rolled onto his back, kind of laying down in midair. "She wants to know if you two are gonna get hitched."

I must have turned fifty shades of red, and I was grateful that I was still hidden among the black clouds. "Um... I don't know," I stammered. Zelos, surprisingly, had never mentioned it.

Taro seemed so bored with the whole event, and Jennai looked furious with me, maybe because Sera was asking me all the questions. "She says for you to keep your eyes open, Sheena. Now she wants to talk to you, Jennai..."

"Keep your eyes open"? What the hell did she mean by that? I panicked slightly and flew back out of the room. It was difficult to move without gravity, but I reached the disc we'd used to get there and rushed back down, hitting the concrete floor with my knees as soon as I was pulled downward.

I grabbed my Rheaird and flew back home, ran into my house, and sat there breathing heavily. What did she mean...? Was she telling my future or something? That was unlikely. Zelos and I didn't even live together, let alone say "I love you" before we parted! Like he would ever want to marry me...

**XOXOXOXO**

I was putting the laundry away about an hour before Mina was to come home, hanging her nice little kimonos up in the closet, and taking the spare clothes Zelos had left here in the drawer I'd set aside for him. Sera's words had kind of faded from my mind, but I still felt shook up about it. _Married_, she said. _Married_.

Chewing my lip, I pulled Zelos' top dresser drawer open and began putting some of the clothes away, when a small, glittery object caught my eye. I picked it up and gasped, dropping the remaining laundry onto the bed. It was a ring, gold band, a large diamond stone on it. "What is this doing here?" I murmured, immediately remembering Sera's words.

As I stared at it, I thought about lots of things — even times before I'd been locked up in jail for seven years. "I shouldn't think too much of it," I reassured myself, "Maybe... maybe it's just a family heirloom or... something." _Hah. Yeah right,_ I thought, _Sera must be psychic._

Next door, I heard a door slam. Jennai had come home, and I suddenly _really_ wanted to go see her. After I put the ring back where I'd found it, and finished putting the laundry away, that's what I did.

**XOXOXOXO**

"What do you want, Sheena?" Jennai snapped at me as soon as her door was open. She looked really stressed and tired, almost like how Taro had sounded when he spoke.

I motioned toward her house. "Can I come in?" Actually, I had never been inside her house before. She had never invited me there, even if we had once been friends.

For a moment, I thought she was going to slam the door in my face, but instead she held it open for me and pointed to the couch so I could sit down.

I picked a spot to sit and watched her wander around the house a little. Her home wasn't too much different than mine, just a little more neat and well-kept, with fancy junk all over the place. "Do you want something from the kitchen?" Jennai asked shrilly, eying me and the couch as if to say, _That doesn't look right._ I shook my head, and she sat down on the other side of the couch.

"So... what did your sister say?" I asked hesitantly. I didn't want her to think I was being all nosy and stuff. It kind of felt weird to pray like this, because it was none of my business.

"Oh... she just apologized for going without saying anything beforehand and told me to take care of myself," my neighbor said, shrugging casually, though I could tell there was something else on her mind.

"Sure was... weird to see her like that." If I thought _that_ was strange, talking to Jennai as if we'd been best friends forever was even worse. "I never knew you two were angels..."

I must have hit a nerve. "I'm _not_ an angel, and neither is Sera! Do we look like filthy mutated half-  
elves to you?" she growled, leaning toward me.

"Don't you insult half-elves, Jennai Cetra. They're no different than you and I." Clearly, my escapades with Genis and Raine had taught me some things.

Jennai just _hmph_ed and crossed her arms as she turned away. "Whatever."

"I'll head home now. You take Sera's advice into consideration," I sneered, getting on my feet and marching toward the door. Halfway out I heard Jennai yell after me — "Don't say yes to him!" I turned back around to stare at her, but she just glared and demanded, "What? Get lost already!"

So I left without another word, and headed on past my house to the school where I would pick up Mina.

The schoolhouse had always been a quiet little building off to the side, a nice, new place that I had had built (I could have things like that done now that I was chief) when Mina turned five. Instead of tables and chairs, there were soft cushions on the wood floor, trays in everyone's lap to use as a writing surface. As I entered, I counted eleven children sitting cross-legged, facing the headmaster, who was giving a summary of their hike in the mountains.

"Ah, good to see you, chief Sheena. Mina was especially well-behaved today," Orochi (the headmaster, of course) told me with a smile. Mina turned quickly and regarded my appearance, not seeming to notice the stress in my eyes, and turned back around to appear attentive for the remainder of class.

"Tomorrow, hand in a short story about what you saw during the field trip. Don't forget to add details!" Orochi concluded. "Remember what adjectives are?"

"Adjectives describe nouns!" the children recited altogether.

"Very good. Class dismissed!" All the children leapt up, leaving their trays at their seats, and stampeded out the door. Except for Mina, who sauntered right up to my side. "Uh, chief? Can I talk to you for just a minute?" Orochi got up as well and approached me.

I nodded, and he said, "Well... it seems Mina had an issue with... wings." Mina lowered her head shamefully, quiet.

"Wings?" I blinked. As if to explain where her teacher couldn't, Mina silently displayed a pair of wings on her back. They were colorless but bright, and resembled the style of Colette's wings. It was then that I realized, she could have only gotten them from Zelos.

"One of the children tried to push her off a high ledge," Orochi explained, "And before she fell to the ground, Mina caught herself with those wings." He rubbed the back of his head exasperatedly before continuing, "However, now the other children tease her . . . "

Placing a hand on my daughter's shoulder and holding her close to me protectively, I sighed. _Oh, Zelos. What problems have your existence stirred up now? _I thought bitterly, hating myself immediately afterward. That wasn't something I was supposed to think about him, right? "Thanks, Orochi . . . I'll talk to her and her father about it at dinner." That said, I gently led Mina outside and down the street, feeling rather uneasy because of her calm silence.


	4. Wings and Rings

**Prescript:** Fast update! Go me! I'm kinda disappointed with the small amount of reviews, but oh well! I love this story, still. So nyeah.

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia. But I do own Taro, Mina, Jennai, and Sera.

**Transcendent; Chapter four: Wings and Rings**

"Don't feel bad, sweetheart," I tried to console Mina, sitting down on her small bed. "There's nothing _wrong_ with having wings." It was hard for me to say anything that'd make her feel better. Zelos was the one with wings, not me. And of course, Zelos wasn't home. He never was.

Mina swung her legs, avoiding my gaze. "But all the kids laughed at me! Even Lilly laughed at me!" I knew, more than anyone, that fitting in at school was a tough and scary thing. "... No one is like me, Mom."

I squeezed her shoulder and managed an encouraging smile. "Sure there is! Your friends, the Sylph, they have wings. And Aska, too!"

"They're just . . . Summon Spirits," she replied gloomily.

"But they're your friends," I said, wishing Zelos were there to back me up. "Daddy has wings too, you know."

Worming away from me, Mina stomped out the door and threw back, "Daddy never comes home! I... hate Daddy!" and stormed out into the village.

To be completely honest, I wasn't surprised. I wasn't expecting her to say she _hated_ Zelos, but I sure could understand why she blew up like that. It made me mad, too. I mean, what could there possibly be out there that was more important to him than his family? "I sure have a lot to talk about with that man," I said aloud, bustling off to do some random housework.

**XOXOXOXO**

Not to my surprise, Mina came home before Zelos did, poorly concealing a handful of flowers behind her back. As soon as I gazed up from the kitchen table, she dove into my lap and stuck the bouquet in my face. "I'm sorry, Mom. I didn't mean to get mad at you."

"It's okay, sweetheart. You were just upset, I know." I took the flowers and put them in the vase on the table, replacing the dead, dried-out daisies Mina had brought me when she'd caught Zelos and I fighting.

"I don't hate Daddy, either," she confided in me. I knew she hadn't meant that, either. It wasn't possible for Mina to have hatred in her heart. "But I wish he would come home, you know?"

Sighing, I nodded. "Me too . . . me too."

We spent that evening talking about Mina's field trip, working on her homework, and trying out a new recipe for dinner. She told me a new poem she'd learned. It was about a bird that couldn't fly, until one day when it saw a rainbow, fluttered its wings, and took to the sky. I thought it was kind of metaphorical.

Just as I was putting Mina to bed, the front door slammed; Zelos' signal to the entire village that he was home. Sure enough, I heard, "Sheena! Oh, hunny! Mina! I'm home!"

"As if we didn't know," Mina giggled, pulling the blankets up to her nose. I laughed and closed her door behind me as I went to meet Zelos.

He smiled a mile wide, taking a seat on my bed. "Hi, hunny! How was your meeting with ol' Taro?"

Folding my arms, I sat beside him. "He took Jennai and me to see Sera. How come you never told me the guy had a reason to exist?"

"Huh?" Zelos gave me a weird look, then blinked. "Oh, that. I didn't think you'd care to know."

_Gee, thanks for assuming that I'm simple minded and selfish,_ I thought. "Right . . . where were you today?"

"At home." His smile shrank a little at my interrogative stare. "Uh . . . doing . . . work?"

"Right. While you were out screwing around in Meltokio, Mina discovered she had angel wings because a bully at school pushed her off a cliff!" I snarled at him. I was just so tired of quietly going along with his schedule. Now that I knew Mina was hurt by it too, I felt it was my duty to step in and make changes.

Zelos seemed to look more amused than concerned. "Really? Where'd she get wings from?" he asked. I wondered if he was really _that_ stupid.

"From you," I said, pointing at the Cruxis Crystal at his throat. "You never told me wings were hereditary, either."

He looked quite shocked, touching the Crystal lightly. "It's _not_ hereditary! She couldn't have gotten it from me!"

Now I was thoroughly convinced that he was lying to me. Mina had no Cruxis Crystal or Exsphere, or any sensible reason that would give her wings. The only thing that made sense was that she had gained it from Zelos at birth. "Zelos, that doesn't make any damn sense!" I argued.

Waving his hands in front of his face defensively, Zelos said, "But it's the truth, hunny! At least, that's what I was told."

My hands planted themselves on my hips. "Told by whom?"

"Taro! He knows this stuff!"

"Oh, Taro!" I hissed, throwing my hands up. It really felt like I'd lost every last ounce of my patience. "That guy is batshit crazy, Zelos! Why would you believe anything he says?"

"Because!" Zelos yelled back. "Taro is my best friend! Always has been!"

"Is that so? Then, what am I? Who am I to you?"

"You're just . . . " Zelos' response was cut short by a loud bang in the doorway. Mina had overturned a chair to get our attention, and I realized suddenly that she'd probably been standing there the whole time.

The little nine-year-old looked between the two of us, her blue eyes so similar to her father's full of tears. "Why do you have to fight?" she cried at me, then at Zelos. "Every time Daddy comes home you always yell and say mean things!"

She turned on Zelos and pointed accusatively. "You make Mom cry when you leave her alone!" Then she turned and did the same to me. "And you always get Daddy angry and start fights!"

Throwing her arms out to the sides, she finished with something I'd never heard her say; "Why don't you both just _shut up_?"

The sad fact was, Mina was absolutely right. Whatever facades Zelos and I had been going on, she saw right through them. And it was the sheer, harsh truth of her words that made me crack and just cry, right in front of both of them.

Zelos had grown awfully quiet, and after a few moments, he pulled me into his arms, rubbing my shoulder gently. "I'm sorry, Sheena . . . and Mina. I... never meant to cause this much trouble." He sighed nervously, almost as if he were going to cry, too.

I rested my head against his chest and let my anger out with a heavy sigh, wiping my tears away quickly. "I'm sorry, too," I admitted, "Maybe I should try to understand you before I get all mad . . . "

Mina watched after us in silence for a minute or two, before I saw her nod once. After she did, she turned and picked up the chair she'd flipped, and went back to bed. Leaving us to resolve the issue with no further assistance (which I found funny — we needed help from our own daughter just to keep from yelling at each other).

"Nah. It's not that." Zelos stroked at my hair, staring off over my shoulder. "I just need to get over my fears . . . "

I tilted my head up to look at him. "What fears?" Maybe I should have asked _What's there to be afraid of?_ But I didn't.

He shook his head. "It's nothing . . . er, well, I'll tell you in the morning. Let's just try talking to each other normally first, eh?"

Strangely enough, the idea of just talking to him sounded better than anything I'd heard in a long time. "Okay," was my simple response.

"So . . . " Zelos took a long look around, then returned his focus on me. "Anything you want to say?"

At first, I was going to shake my head and tell him to pick the topic, but before I could do that, I recalled the ring in his drawer. Curiosity struck. "Well, I saw a really pretty ring in your dresser drawer while I was putting the laundry away," I trailed, trying to sound casual about it.

When I said _ring_, his face turned a little pale and his gaze darted away. "Oh, really? It's nice, huh . . . ?" He was bluffing, I could _so_ tell.

"Yeah, really nice." My whole body twitched. "What's it for?" Did I sound too pushy? Or have that tone like I already knew and was playing dumb with him? I sincerely hoped not.

He managed to glimpse at me again before looking elsewhere. "It's . . . an engagement ring, y'know?" Trying to sound casual too; we were both bluffing so badly.

"Oh?" I raised my eyebrows, interested. "Who for?'

Out of the blue, Zelos snatched up my hand and held it tightly in his. "Sheena, it's for you. I... I want to know if you'll marry me."

Although it wasn't a _total _surprise, I sort of gasped and covered my mouth, smiling through my fingers. "O-of course," I stammered. What else could I say? "Yes, I will."

Zelos fairly mauled me in a hug. From somewhere else in the room, I heard a soft giggle, but didn't bother looking for where it came from. "I love you," he purred in my ear.

"I love you too," I responded, clinging to him for dear life. It'd been so long since I'd heard something like that, and it felt better in my heart than I remembered. As I held onto his waist, I got the same feeling I had whenever I stood and watched Mina go to school — I wanted to hold no forever and never let go for fear of losing him.


	5. The Tower

**Prescript:** Hmm. I like Pepsi very much. Yay!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own Tales of Symphonia. But I do own Taro, Mina, Jennai, and Sera.

**Transcendent; Chapter five: The Tower**

Since that night, changes for the better had definitely been made. Mina became cheerful and began to accept her wings as something that made her special and unique. Zelos packed his necessary things and moved in with me, leaving his mansion in the care of his butler. Even I acted more agreeable and calm.

In fact, I woke up with a start late Friday morning to find that Mina was already at school, Zelos had taken her, and left me a full portion of breakfast. It felt like we were a real family.

And it was on a lazy Sunday afternoon that I was sitting at the kitchen table, drumming my fingers on the wood. My engagement ring clicked against the table, reminding me that it was still there. All the household chores were done, and there was nothing to do.

Occasionally, Mina would prance by, humming a little tune, but would be gone just as quickly. Zelos was asleep in the bedroom (since I had granted him permission to take Sundays off).

Outside, doors opened and closed, villagers gathering to praise the Goddess for their day (a custom I had never bothered to do away with). Normally it was the chief's job to conduct the prayers and such, but I really didn't feel like it. Maybe Kuchinawa would do it for me.

Mina passed by, but caught me idly sitting there and came into the kitchen. "You look bored," she said as she sat next to me. I shrugged. "Aren't you supposed to be at the sermon?" She grinned knowingly at me.

"Kuchinawa's doing it today," I replied. Not like I knew that for sure, but one could only assume. "Besides, they can pray by themselves. They don't need my help."

Giving me that knowing look, she tapped my arm. "But it's your job, mom!"

"And _your_ job is to keep your room clean, but you didn't clean it on Friday. I checked." My expression mirrored hers.

Clearly trapped, Mina hesitated, then smirked. "You may have won this battle, but you haven't won the war!" she exclaimed, jumping from her seat and brandishing a spoon at me.

I picked up a spatula from the counter and defended myself, laughing as we both cried, "En gardé!" and, "Touché!" during the 'sword fight.'

Before long, Zelos galloped into the kitchen with a broom in his hands, and slashed the air in front of him with an evil, villain-like cackle. "Avast, ye knights! It is I, Abyssion! I shall slay thee!" he challenged.

Mina just about died laughing and flew at her father, spoon in hand. I stood back and watched as she mauled him into the floor, then stuck the spoon in his mouth after he was 'dead.'

"Abyssion is no more!" declared I. "We win again!" I pulled a victory pose, and Zelos laughed, spitting out the spoon.

"I'll clean my room now," Mina said, surrendering and retreating to the bedroom. I picked up the kitchenware that ad been strewn about during our war.

Zelos stood and fixed his slightly mussed hair. "Good morning, sunshine." He rummaged through the cupboards and took out a box of crackers to snack on. Some breakfast, eh?

"Morning." I almost laughed. It was nearly two in the afternoon. "Kinda."

Outside, the sound of people praying in unison was loud. Some villagers were shouting. Kuchinawa was louder than all of them, leading the sermon as I expected him to. Though I figured that he would come by to tell me off good-naturedly later. Besides, I couldn't really get in trouble for being flakey; I was the chief. So ha. Zelos didn't seem to notice that I had weaseled my way out of my Sunday job, and rested his head in his hand while he munched crackers.

He didn't seem to have anything to talk about, so I let my mind wander. The first thought was what Jennai said as I was leaving yesterday. "Don't say yes to him!" What had she meant? Who was 'him'? Surely she wasn't being all psychic and telling me not t make Zelos my fiancé...

"Sheena," Zelos turned toward me, looking kind of dazed. "Don't make the wrong decision."

I snapped to attention and blinked at him. "What?"

Zelos blinked back. "I didn't say anything."

"Yes, you did!" My eyes widened a little. "You told me not to make the wrong decision."

All I got was a blank stare. "No... I didn't." His expression was full of vacant stupidity. "I didn't say a word, sweetheart."

"Uh... okay," I replied. Maybe I was just imagining things. "Anyway, I'm gonna go out to the gardens for awhile. Watch Mina, wouldja?"

He nodded slowly, watching me out the door. I walked around back and took the long way to the vegetable fields, avoiding the village gathering by Tiga's house. (Goddess, I loved having him as a subordinate. Now I could call him by name and boss him around.)

The gardens were my place of solace. Years ago, I had sat with Corrine and confessed my fear of pact-making. Lloyd had reassured me here, Zelos and I had had our first fight here. Sitting cross-legged, my mind wandered once again.

**XOXOXOXO**

I'm guessing that I had fallen asleep, because when I woke I was on my side, and familiar faces stood over me, yelling my name. "What is it?" I grumbled, rubbing my eyes.

"Get up, you lazy moron!" Jennai snapped. Her image shook in front of me. "The Tower of Salvation is falling!"

Mina, Jennai, Kuchinawa, and Orochi all stood around me, the other villagers nearby. I looked up to see the sky very dark and purple. Was it Derris-Kharlan? "If we don't get out of here, the tower will fall and kill us!" Kuchinawa said. I stood up.

"We can't leave Mizuho!" I insisted uselessly. It wasn't like we could save the village by picking up the buildings and running away with them. I corrected myself, "Okay, we're going to go through Gaorrachia forest and go to Meltokio!"

Mina rushed up and pulled on my hand. "Mom, Daddy went to get Uncle Taro," she said. My first thought was, _Go figure_, but I nodded anyway and rushed off to the woods with the others close behind.

Halfway through, Mina left my side and ran down a different path, the one leading to the Tower of Salvation. Since I didn't have time to make the group of people stop and wait, I told Kuchinawa, "Keep going onto Meltokio. I'll catch up," and took off after my daughter.

She wove mindlessly through the trees, never looking away from the crumbling tower ahead of her. When I caught up, she was standing right in front of the door. "What are you doing?"

A rustle in the bushes announced Jennai's arrival. She followed us? I'd have to tell Kuchinawa to pay more attention next time. "Sheena, what in Martel's name is your daughter doing?"

"Mommy," Mina said as she took my hand, "come inside with me." She looked back at Jennai. "Bring your friend, too!"

Confused, I looked at Jennai and motioned for her to follow. Mina led us inside, taking the same path Taro had used to lead us to Sera.

"Sheena," Jennai whined, looking around. The whole tower was shaking beneath us, ready to fall at any time. "What... what's Mina doing?"

It was dark all around. "I have no idea." We took a warp disc higher up into the Tower, and it got even darker still.

After a few steps, Mina let go of my hand and yelped, looking around frantically. "Mom, where are we? What's going on?" _Ah, great,_ I'm thinking, _now she doesn't know where she is._

"You brought us here, kid!" Jennai yelled with a stomp of her foot, "And you don't even know where you're going?"

Mina said nothing. I peered around, wondering where we were. Or better yet, _why_ we were there. "How do we get out?" I asked, but got no answer.

"We're lost! This place is going to fall and we're gonna die!" Jennai declared, and Mina burst into tears. "Then they'll come looking for us, and we'll be nothing but—"

Before she could finish her rant, I felt the ground fall out from under me. Air rushed past my ears, and I began falling.

All I could feel was cold air blowing in my face. I was hurtling toward the ground so fast that every speck of dust was a blur. When I hit the ground I choked, gasping for breath. There was pressure on my throat, a low hum in my ears, and it was totally dark. "Ah! Help! Someone please help me!" My voice echoed into the darkness; a hopeless plea. Where was Zelos when I needed him?

Very abruptly, there came a sharp pain in the back of my head. My breath caught in my throat, the blood drained from my face, and everything slowly faded to black...

**XOXOXOXO**

For the second time that day, I was woke up by a few familiar faces. When my vision returned, it was Mina I saw standing over me, very near tears. "Mom! You're okay!" she gasped.

"What happened to me?" I sat up and my head exploded with pain. "Ack, my head! Damn, what the hell?"

Jennai's voice came from somewhere nearby. I couldn't see her, because were in some kind of pitch-black tunnel. "We were attacked by someone."

"I saw them," reported Mina. "They had big black wings and big weapons in their hands!" She held onto my arm. "First they hit you on the head, then they hit Jennai, and... they looked at me funny and flew away."

My head throbbed painfully. "Angels?"

"Oh yeah," Mina added. She pointed past me to the far wall. "She came here after the scary angels left."

I turned my head very slowly toward a source of dim light in the corner. Sera sat there, red wings wrapped around her whole body as a feathery blanket. Then I remembered I was cold, and shivered. "Has she talked?"

"Not really. She said hello, and that she was tired. That's all," Jennai answered. She sounded frustrated, and pained.

It hurt to move my head, but I looked around anyway. The only thing of interest (besides Sera) was an opening in the tunnel above us. It was so far up that the light didn't reach us down at the bottom.

Mina clung very tightly to my arm, her hands trembling. I worried that she would get sick from the cold atmosphere. My eyes lingered on the opening above us, thinking of a way for us to reach it.

"Sweetheart," I said, patting Mina's arm. I was taking a big chance, but knew I had to ask, "I need you to fly up there with your wings and find a way to get us out. Can you do that for me?"


End file.
